Agency-listedUSFS Tongass National Forest -- Ketchikan-Misty Fjords Ranger District · dispersedFreeOpen today
Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail)
Hike-in · public land · AK · 55.34427, -131.59608
Ask an AI about this campsiteOpens Grok already loaded with this site. It reads the same records this page is built from, and links whatever it tells you.
Ask about this camp →The land manager lists this site. Someone from the agency inventoried it, so it is a real camp — not a spot we guessed at. What changes is conditions — roads, gates, closures, fire rules. Check those with the unit before you commit to the drive.
Can I go now? — Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail) · public land · AK
Open today Opened Jun 1; the record gives no closing date.
public land record: “June” Read against the calendar on 2026-09-17; with JavaScript your browser re-checks it against today.
USGS topo — contours & terrain
Aerial — USGS / NAIP
Weather outlook — at Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail)
Loading the latest forecast…
Live NWS area forecast (~2.5 km grid, not elevation-corrected). Camp sits at 2,755 ft.
Fire & smoke — around Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail)NIFC · AirNow
Checking active fires & air quality…
Active wildfires from NIFC (within ~50 mi); air quality from AirNow. Always confirm current fire restrictions with the managing office before you go.
Everything you need — measured from Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail) · public land · AK
Straight-line miles · bearings approx · roads run longer
Nearest of each
- +Urgent care1 mi
- GGrocery2 mi
- FFuel2 mi
- WWater2 mi
- HHardware3 mi
- RxPharmacy4 mi
- @Mail4 mi
≤30 mi30–4545+water
The read: water is basically at camp, fuel & food sit about 2 mi out, no EV fast charger is listed within 150 mi.
Not within 60 mi: Dump, Propane. Plan those before you head up.
EV fast charger: none listed within 150 straight-line mi (US DOE data). Charge before the turn-off.
One dot per need — the nearest of each kind, straight-line from camp. Places from OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors); the EV fast charger from the US DOE station locator. Open in Google Maps ↗
The site — Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail)
Access
Hike-in
Land
public land · dispersed
Elevation
2,755 ft
State
AK
Coordinates
55.34427, -131.59608
Cost
Free
Nearby & resupply — around Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail) · public land · AK (OpenStreetMap)
- Resupply lookup unavailable — try the map links below.
EV charging — from Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail) · public land · AK — nearest public DC fast & Level 2 (US DOE station data)
- Nearest public DC fast chargerNone listed within 150 straight-line miles. Plan the charge before the turn-off.
- Nearest public Level 2 (J1772)15.8 mi — ELECTRIC BUS MPL ELEC BUSS, Metlakatla, AK · ChargePoint Network · J1772 · 2 Level 2 ports listed · listed open, last confirmed by AFDC 2026-09-16 · hours: 24 hours daily
- Read this honestlyStraight-line miles, like every distance on this site. Roads run longer than this, and you have to get back. We know where a charger is listed. We don’t know if it works today, how fast it is, or the road miles. Check the network before you commit.
Snapshot 2026-09-16 · US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center
Nearby restrooms — around Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail) · public land · AK — pit toilets, restrooms & rest areas (government data)
- RestroomDeer Mountain Shelter · at this camp · USFS
- RestroomDeer Mountain · ~1.1 mi W · USFS
- RestroomSoutheast Alaska Discovery Center · ~1.9 mi W · USFS
- RestroomLower Silvis Lake · ~4.5 mi NE · USFS
Open Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail) elsewhere
Other camps near Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail)
If this one is full, gated or washed out.
- Three C'S~6.0 mi · fee
- Ketchikan Gateway Borough~6.0 mi · fee
- Ketchikan Gateway Borough~6.2 mi
- Last Chance Campground~7.0 mi · fee
How we know this — Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail)
Open season
June
Stay limit
None published
Source
public land records
Confidence
Agency-confirmed — The managing agency's own record names this as a campsite and puts it at these coordinates. About as good as it gets short of standing here.
How it was placed
https://www.fs.usda.gov/r10/tongass/recreation/deer-mountain-shelter-site (read 2026-08-17). Fee field reads: "Free". Seasons of use listed as "June". A 16' x 16' A-frame shelter rebuilt in 2008-09 ABOVE THE TIMBER LINE at 2,900 feet, with two double bunks for four, a sleeping loft for four, a propane stove (BRING YOUR OWN 1-POUND CANISTERS), table, benches and a cooking counter. Reached by hiking 2.5 miles up the Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail from the trailhead parking area, about 4 miles from downtown Ketchikan. No restrooms. No stay limit stated. Restrooms: No restrooms. Water: the page states plainly that potable water is not available at this site. Nearest town/access per the page: Ketchikan -- roughly 4 miles from downtown, or 2.5 miles up from the trailhead. | auto:agency-trust 2026-08-18: state agency GIS record with a source URL and coordinates, confidence not low. Fee value is the agency's own, not field-checked. Not field-verified -- confirm access, road conditions and fire rules before you go.
Season
Read from the agency's own season / closure text in this record (data/conditions.py) and checked against the calendar. The words we read are printed under the verdict at the top of the page.
EV chargers
US DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center station locator, snapshot 2026-09-16. Straight-line miles to the nearest public, open, unrestricted station; restricted and planned units are shown but never counted.
Field check
On the agency's books. The land manager inventoried this site, so its existence is not in question — current conditions are. Nobody from here has camped it recently.
What we don’t know about Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail)
A land record can put you within a few metres of a spot. It cannot tell you any of this — so check it yourself, and treat anything below as the open question it is.
- Road surface & last-mile access
- How many rigs actually fit
- Cell coverage by carrier
- Current fire restrictions
- Whether any water here is drinkable
- Shade & wind exposure
- Noise and who else shows up
- Whether a listed EV charger works today, or the road miles to it
Before you go — Deer Mountain Shelter (Deer Mountain National Recreation Trail)
Water on public land →Dumping grey & black →Cold-weather camping →Gear & rig loadout →All field notes →
Been here? Tell us what changed. This page is built from public records, so the fastest way it gets better is somebody who has actually pulled in. Road washed out, site gone, gate locked, or it is exactly as described — all of it useful. Send a report →